HearYa Live Session 11: The Spider Bags

by Woody on December 18, 2007

A couple weeks ago, my son and I made it down to Shirk’s studio for his second “concert.” While not as physically appealing as The Gore Gore Girls, Teddy was still in for a treat with Chapel Hill’s The Spider Bags. The bags hauled their shit up Shirk’s steps and fueled up with some coffee after a rough night in Milwaukee.

Dan and Greg laid down a couple of acoustic tracks to start things off while Paul, Mike and myself debated the North Carolina hoops scene. In the middle of my monologue declaring 99% of Duke fans to be assholes, I was struck at how much Dan sounded like David Berman on these acoustic numbers.

Shortly thereafter, Paul and Mike headed into the studio and boys kicked into a couple of my favorites off of A Celebration Of Hunger, including “Waking Up Drunk” which Dan declared to be a love song. Much to my chagrin, my wife doesn’t see the romantic overtures that the rollicking tune delivers. I’ve even conducted a case study (in the name of science) by waking up drunk at my house to see if her love for me would grow stronger. The answer was a firm no. Romantic or not, I still dig it.

“So Long A Rope” followed and, as Dan’s intro points out, it’s a sad song wrapped in bouncy beats and cheery keys which seem to soften the lyrics. Lastly, they kicked into a new tune “Que Viva El Rock and Roll.”

As they loaded up to leave town, Teddy exchanged some high-fives with The Spider Bags. He still thinks their name is funny but he seemed to enjoy hanging with guys. I just love the loose nature of their music. I’d compare them to an old flannel shirt. Always comfortable, sometimes a little worn and disheveled, but always keeps you feeling good.